Bubbleheart's Task
by Waterre
Summary: Since kithood, Bubbleheart has known her fate is to save StarClan from fading into nonexistence––but the prophecy and the attention it brings has gone to her head. Will she be able to overcome her arrogance and fulfill her destiny, or be beaten by her own ego?
1. Allegiances

**ALLEGIANCES**

**THUNDERCLAN**

**LEADER HONEYSTAR**––a warm orange she-cat with green eyes.

**APPRENTICE, TIGERPAW**

**DEPUTY TWIGFUR**––a solid brown tom with green eyes.

**APPRENTICE, SNOWPAW  
**

**MEDICINE CAT GRAYLEAF**––a dull gray tom with bright blue eyes.

**WARRIORS **(toms and she-cats without kits)

**WILLOWBREEZE**––a smoky gray she-cat with dark blue eyes.

**APPRENTICE, THORNPAW.**

**DAWNBLAZE**––a dark gray she-cat with yellow eyes.

**TWIGFUR**––a solid brown tom with green eyes.

**FROSTPELT**––a black tom with bright yellow eyes. His fur is tinged silver on his muzzle, tail, paws, and ear tips.

**APPRENTICE, CREEKPAW**

**FLOWERTAIL**––an tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes.

**LITTLEWHISKER**––a reddish-brown she-cat with blue eyes.

**APPRENTICES** (cats over six moons old training to become warriors or medicine cats)

**TIGERPAW**––an orange tabby she-cat with yellow eyes.

**SNOWPAW**––a white tom with black ears, paws, and tail and bright blue eyes.

**THORNPAW**––a brown and white tom with one eye, which is green.

**CREEKPAW**––a cream tom with green eyes.

**QUEENS **(she-cats nursing or expecting kits)

**NETTLEFUR**––a light brown tabby she-cat nursing Twigfur's kits, Bubblekit and Fernkit.

**ELDERS**

**CLOUDFOOT**––a white tom with green eyes.

**BRIARCLAW**––a tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes.

**WINDCLAN  
**

**LEADER FOGSTAR**––a light gray tom with striking blue eyes.

**DEPUTY IVYBLOSSOM**––a silver tabby she-cat with dull blue eyes.

**MEDICINE CAT FROSTFUR**––a pretty brown tabby she-cat with green eyes.

**WARRIORS**

**CLOUDFOOT**––a large, puffy white tom with yellow eyes.

**APPRENTICE, THISTLEPAW**

**RAINPOOL**––a black tom with amber eyes.

**APPRENTICE, MOSSPAW**

**WHITEWING**––a cream she-cat with brown spots and green eyes.

**SNAKETAIL**––a brown tabby tom with bright yellow eyes.

**APPRENTICE, STONEPAW**

**QUEENS**

**SMOKEFUR**––a deep gray she-kit expecting Snaketail's kits.

**SNOWBREEZE**––a white she-cat nursing Rainpool's kits, Birdkit and Stemkit.

**ELDERS**

**REDFOOT**––a tortoiseshell tom with green eyes.

**BERRYCLAW**––a cream and brown pointed she-cat with blue eyes.

**RIVERCLAN**

**LEADER THORNSTAR**––a deep brown she-cat with amber eyes.

**DEPUTY TWISTEDFOOT**––a brown tabby tom with yellow eyes and a twisted back paw.

**MEDICINE CAT DUSTFUR**––a tabby tom with slightly curly fur and blue eyes.

**APPRENTICE, SANDPAW**

**WARRIORS**

**REDWING**––a reddish she-cat with green eyes.

**APPRENTICE, YELLOWPAW**

**LEAFTAIL**––a tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat with green eyes.

**APPRENTICE, VOLEPAW**

**MISTBREEZE**––a white tom with gray splotches and amber eyes.

**FIRECLAW**––an orange tabby tom with blue eyes.

**APPRENTICE, SPARROWPAW**

**OWLTALON**––a mottled brown she-cat with sharp claws and yellow eyes.

**QUEENS**

**LARKSONG**––a reddish-brown she-cat expecting Sleetfur's kits.

**ELDERS**

**PINECLAW**––a deep brown she-cat with green eyes.

**SHELLEAR**––a creamy white tom with yellow eyes.

**SHADOWCLAN**

**LEADER MOTHSTAR**––a night-black tom with green eyes and a yellowish patch on each of his shoulders.

**DEPUTY MINTFUR**––a tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat with green eyes.

**MEDICINE CAT FLECKNOSE**––a gray tom with black flecks on his nose and yellow eyes.

**APPRENTICE, EAGLEPAW**

**WARRIORS**

**BLUENOSE**––a slate gray she-cat with bright blue eyes.

**WHITEFROST**––a white she-cat with green eyes.

**APPRENTICE, STORMPAW**

**TREETAIL**––a black tom with yellow eyes.

**SWALLOWSTRIPE**––a brown tabby tom with yellow eyes.

**APPRENTICE, MUDPAW**

**ADDERTOOTH**––a silver tabby tom with blue eyes.

**QUEENS**

**SPARROWBURR**––an orange she-cat expecting Mothstar's kits.


	2. Prologue

Standing alone on the bank of a clear stream, an orange she-cat sat patiently looking at the gentle flow of the water. She hunched down, her body still full of energy and life, and took a few sips.

"It's about time," came a voice from behind her.

She drew her head up slowly and licked water droplets from her whiskers. "What do you want, Graytail?"

"We've decided," he stated. "We've decided it's time you send that kit back in."

"The kit is _mine_," she hissed. "You know if I send her in now, I might not get to see her again."

"If she doesn't fulfill her mission," Graytail countered. "But we have to have faith that we will. Peachfur, we know you are not long for StarClan." The glimmering dust at the tips of her fur was starting to fade, and her whiskers were ever so slowly falling closer to her face. "If we send her, you could spend all of eternity with her. Or else, of course, there's the other option."

"I don't want to take that risk," Peachfur spat. "She's all I have left."

"Don't be a fish-brain! Once you've faded away, we'll just send her in anyway! Do it now, when you can give her guidance and a proper goodbye." He took a few steps forward and gingerly touched his tail tip to Peachfur's shoulder. "It is in no way our intention to make this painful for you. We must simply rely on her power."

"She didn't live to fulfill the prophecy the first time. Why do you think now would be different?"

"I don't know," Graytail admitted. "But soon, she will fade away, just like you; just like the rest of us! We act now, or we lose this chance forever. Please, Peachfur," he meowed, his demanding facade falling to reveal a desperate plea. "Don't be selfish. We need her. All of us do."

Peachfur bowed her head. "I do not want to do this," she meowed, "but if you would really insist on taking her from her own mother, quite truly prying her from my dead claws, I suppose I'd rather send her off with a lick than a hit to the rump."

Graytail nodded. "It's understood. Where have you hidden her?"

Peachfur slowly walked over to a nearby bush and pulled out a tiny cream kit, setting her down on the bank. She mewled in protest, her eyes not even opened. "Whatever Clan you arrive in, I pray you fight for it with the integrity of a thousand warriors. Whatever life you lead, whatever role you fulfill, know that I am always watching over you."

"Hurry up," Graytail mewed. "I hear a queen down below is kitting today. Hurry up, and we'll have to wait until she's with kits again!"

"Don't try and be funny." Peachfur appeared absolutely distraught and lachrymose. With a final deep breath, she licked the forehead of her tiny kit. "Serve your Clan well," she mewed. Stepping away, standing in front of an empty patch of grass, she wailed. "She'll never be worth all of StarClan," she hissed to Graytail.

"I know," he replied, his figure sunken. "She will forever be our kit. Look on the bright side; I'm sure she'll be back soon enough. Nobody down there lasts for long."

"Neither does anybody up here, either," Peachfur added.


	3. Chapter One

In the eyes of anyone smaller than a mouse, ThunderClan was an immensely large group of constantly moving cats who all wound up smelling the same after a night in the same den. Bubblekit, standing next to her sister in the entrance to the nursery, was trying to make a game with her sister out of naming the warriors they saw coming in and out of the camp.

"That's Snowpelt, isn't it?" Fernkit asked.

"Does it matter?"

"Of course it does! These cats are our Clanmates. They're our future leaders, deputies, medicine cats, elders––"

"So, we'll have seasons and seasons to mess up their names! Why start now?" Bubblekit groaned. She rolled onto her back and swatted at a butterfly flitting above her head.

"It's your turn," Fernkit meowed. "You name someone."

Bubblekit's eyes scanned the camp and quickly landed on a target. "Flowertail. That one's easy."

"Come on, everyone knows Flowertail! That one was easy," Fernkit whined. Flowertail was quite recognizable from the other cats by the ivy wrapped around a kink in her tail.

"What are you two doing?" came the familiar voice of Bubblekit's mother. She rolled back over and stood up, brushing dust off her paws.

"We're playing a game," she answered curtly.

Nettlefur giggled and swatted at Bubblekit's ear. "Whatever game you two are playing, it looks quite odd. Could you imagine having two other cats just staring at you and talking to each other?"

"That does sound kind of mean," Fernkit mewed. "I hope nobody took it the wrong way! We weren't saying anything bad, I promise."

"I believe you," she meowed. "Want me to take you for another tour of the camp? You can surprise Twigfur when he gets back from patrol."

"Oh, can we?" Fernkit trilled with delight. "Please, can we?"

"Of course!" Nettlefur draped her pale brown tail over the backs of her daughters. "Walk with me, and be nice."

Fernkit and Bubblekit hopped along at her paws. Nettlefur was different than most queens in ThunderClan, even in choosing her kits' names, deciding to name one of her kits over an element of water rather than something in the woods. She liked to take them on tours of the camp, though most times they needed to visit something multiple times to remember it correctly.

She paused in front of the elder's den. "Here are where retired warriors, queens, and medicine cats go. They're some of the wisest members of our Clan, and it's important to keep them safe like we did for us."

"Are they the most important?" Fernkit asked. She peeked her head inside. "All they're doing is sleeping?"

"I don't really know who the most important member of the Clan is," Nettlefur mewed. "That's for you to figure out yourself." She guided her kits away. "Let's not disturb them. Remember that every cat, even the leader herself, needs sleep. We are lucky to have our elders; I've heard that ShadowClan was struck by sickness and lost all of theirs."

"ShadowClan? Gross!" Fernkit exclaimed.

"A time of prosperity is no time to provoke another Clan," Nettlefur meowed, leading her kits away. "We are all lucky to be here. Last leaf-bare was harsh." She stopped in front of the next den. "Say hello to our warriors!"

Bubblekit popped her head in. "Hello, warriors!"

A few cats, halfway between gossip and sleep, peeked their heads up and gave her lazy flicks of their tails.

"Aren't the warriors great?" Fernkit mewed, taking her turn to look inside. "I can't wait to be a warrior!"

"Not so fast! At least let me get back to my warrior duties before you join our ranks," Nettlefur meowed. She took her kits next to the medicine cat's den. "Here's the medicine cat den. Grayleaf!" she called. "Are you in there?"

A young gray tom padded out into the clearing. "Hello, Nettlefur! Are these the new subjects? I have some new herbs to test!"

Fernkit and Bubblekit backed up behind their mother, cowering in fear. "He's just joking," Nettlefur meowed, giving them both a push forward with her tail. "Medicine cats are very gentle."

"Of course I'm gentle," Grayleaf meowed with an affirming nod. "I mean, of course I'm gentle to the cats I like."

Fernkit and Bubblekit took off, tumbling over their paws and each other and falling in a heap a few tail-lengths away. As they picked themselves up, they each felt teeth on their scruff.

"Bubblekit! Grayleaf's gonna eat you!" Fernkit cried from the jaws of her mother.

"Don't worry," Grayleaf meowed through a mouthful of light cream fur. "I was just joking." They set the two kits down next to each other and sat in front of them. "Remember, if you ever think you might need to see me, don't hesitate to come here. Even thorns in pads are an important issue."

"Why? They're just thorns!" Bubblekit argued.

"You don't want them to get any more stuck in there than they already are, don't you?" Grayleaf explained. "Either way, thorns aren't my only job. If either of you ever have questions concerning StarClan, or just need someone to talk to, I'm usually around here."

"Don't you have to help other cats who've been hurt?" Fernkit asked.

"We're at peace now," Grayleaf answered. "Until the next fight starts, my job has been much easier."

"Thank you for talking to my kits, Grayleaf," Nettlefur meowed. She led her kits back toward the nursery and paused in front of a large crack in the rock she had passed by. "See what's in there?"

"Is that another den?"

"I saved this one for last," Nettlefur responded, nudging her kits forward with her big tail, "because I knew it would take all your energy."

Fernkit and Bubblekit each approached the bramble-covered cleft. Pausing in the entrance, they were suddenly thrown onto their backs. Yowling, they looked up to see Tigerpaw and Thornpaw had ambushed them, pouncing out of the apprentice's den.

"You two will be living here soon," Nettlefur meowed, flicking Tigerpaw's ear with her paw. "Would you two lovely apprentices mind getting off my kits?"

Tigerpaw backed off of Bubblekit and Thornpaw bowed his head, stepping over Fernkit and expecting a reprimanding. However, none was given.

"Now, you know how big and scary apprentices are," Nettlefur told her kits, "but what you're about to learn is that they have to do all sorts of icky things, like cleaning the elders of ticks and taking out old moss!"

"Ew!" her daughters meowed in unison. They both followed their mother back to the nursery.

"I don't want to become an apprentice anymore," Fernkit meowed. "Not if we have to do gross stuff like that!"

"Me neither," Bubblekit mewed, settling back into her usual spot in the nursery, nestling right next to her sister.

* * *

As much as they were disheartened by learning about an apprentice's tasks, it wasn't long before Fernkit and Bubblekit were back to eagerly anticipating their apprenticeship. They spent most of their time watching passing warriors and discussing who would be the best mentors.

"I hope I get Flowertail," Fernkit mused. "She's so pretty, and if I could do something cool with my tail like that, it would be so fun!"

"She doesn't wrap it herself," Bubblekit meowed. "Grayleaf does it for her." She let her eyes trail around the camp.

"How do you know?"

"I've seen her go in there in the mornings. Sometimes, she goes out to get more ivy herself."

"Either way," Fernkit mewed, "I'm sure she'd be a good mentor."

Bubblekit stood up and stretched. "Maybe Honeystar could be our mentor," she meowed. "I mean, our father's the deputy. I hear that she might take an interest in us."

"Well, she can't mentor us both," Fernkit sighed. "Maybe we'll be mentored by two mates. That way, we get to see each other all the time!"

"We'll still be living in the same den," Bubblekit meowed. "I'm sure we'll have lots of time to talk."

"Oh, I'm just so excited! Only one more moon, and we're a step forward to being warriors! We get new names, a new den, and the chance to fight for our Clan!"

"I hope we're not fighting," Bubblekit admitted. "I don't want to go into battle." Even play fighting had spooked her; she still avoided walking past the apprentice's den for fear of being attacked.

"I'm sure everyone starts that way," she meowed, "except for those hotheaded toms Thornpaw and Creekpaw!"

"Thornpaw's no hothead," Bubblekit laughed. "He's a little scaredy-mouse!"

"Are you a scaredy-mouse?"

"No way!" Bubblekit meowed.

"Then prove it," Fernkit ordered.

"How?"

"Climb Highledge."

Bubblekit shook her head. "No way! I can't climb _Highledge! _Honeystar would have me on the fresh-kill pile!"

"ThunderClan is for brave cats. Are you not brave? Maybe you should go be in ShadowClan, or RiverClan, or WindClan!"

"WindClan? No way! Rabbits are so stringy," Bubblekit protested.

"Then, do it!" Fernkit was already padding to the tumble of rocks leading up to Highledge. "Climb!"

Bubblekit looked down at her sister. She didn't want to climb to Highledge, but it seemed as if the only other choice she had was to face the ridicule of her sister. Her paws shaking, she started up the stones.

She could feel her heart beating in her paw pads and the tip of her tail, which was extended all the way out for balance. The rocks were far apart, and although a fully grown cat could simply bound up them, she wasn't sure she could make it without jumping. Her eyes darting between her sister and the rocks ahead, it seemed like it took her an entire moon to get to Honeystar's den at the top. Proudly stepping to the front of Highledge, she looked down at her sister below and heard several gasps from cats in the camp.

"Bubblekit?" came the voice of a tom.

Bubblekit whipped around. "Hello?" Grayleaf was sitting with Honeystar in her den, the two of them looking interrupted from an important conversation.

"I'm so sorry," she immediately started. "Fernkit dared me to climb––"

"I suppose it's a sign that you're here now," Grayleaf sighed. "Take a seat."

Bubblekit took a few steps forward and settled down. "What is it?"

"May I tell her?"

"I suppose we may as well," Honeystar replied. "She is here now, after all, and StarClan works in strange ways. Go ahead."

"Bubblekit, I've received a prophecy from StarClan," Grayleaf began.

"A prophecy? Wow!"

"I believe that you may be part of it," he continued. "I believe it would be in our best interest, as a Clan, and for StarClan's sake, that you train under me as a medicine cat so you can communicate with our ancestors."

"A medicine cat? I don't want to be a medicine cat!"

"Why not?" Grayleaf snapped.

"Grayleaf," Honeystar growled. "Bubblekit, I know being a medicine cat may not be what you want. I've been trying to suggest that you train under _me, _as a warrior, with close communication with Grayleaf."

"That won't be enough," Grayleaf hissed. "A prophecy is too serious. If we know about it this soon, I say we start preparing her right away."

"Don't I get a say?" Bubblekit whimpered. "I'm just a kit!"

"We know you are," Honeystar meowed soothingly, putting her orange tail on Bubblekit's shoulder. "You have some time to think about it before you begin your apprenticeship. For now, as the leader of ThunderClan, I plan to train you as a warrior."

Bubblekit looked at Grayleaf. He looked dejected and was avoiding Honeystar's eyes. "You should think about the Clan, Bubblekit," he said.

"Sometimes, it's not about what you're forced to do," Honeystar countered. "It's about what makes you happy."

Bubblekit stood up. "I'm going to think about it a while, if you don't mind." She looked back down at the rocks leading to the ground.

"You got up here by yourself," Honeystar mewed. "I expect you can make the climb down on your own."

The climb down wasn't as daunting as the climb up, and Bubblekit hopped off the last rock with a graceful landing. Her paws were still warm and sweaty. Not bothering to come up with a lie to mask what had happened, she figured Fernkit would assume her scared look meant Bubblekit had just been reprimanded.

"Was she mean to you?" Fernkit asked.

Bubblekit sighed. "I deserved it."

"Don't look so upset," Fernkit mewed, nuzzling her sister. "You proved your bravery. That makes you more ThunderClan than I. Now, you know what always cheers you up?"

"What is it?"

"We'll play KitClan! I'll be Fernstar, and you can be the other leader, Bubblestar! Or, better yet, you can be Bubblestar, leader of NurseryClan! We'll have a battle!"

"Okay," Bubblekit giggled. "How about after I beat you, I'll be your medicine cat?"

"A medicine cat? Why would you want to be that?"

"I don't know," Bubblekit meowed. "Maybe I just want to try something new. Either way, I'll be Bubblestar, but I'll then be Bubblekit, your medicine cat."

"You can't be a medicine cat as a kit," Fernkit said.

"Well, that's something quite mouse-brained of you to say, considering you're a kit _leader _in a kit _Clan! _C'mon! NurseryClan, attack!" Bubblekit exclaimed. She leapt on her sister.


	4. Chapter Two

Bubblekit was still faced with her tough decision to make, but it helped her to know that at least she could clearly see into her potential futures. The despair that Fernkit expressed at having certain cats as her mentor was enough to shake Bubblekit; in her sister's case, ignorance was the furthest thing from bliss. _Honeystar or Grayleaf––who do I want to train under? No, that's not what I should be asking myself. Should I prepare to condition myself to be leader, or to save the Clan from sickness and injury? _Either way, her time and requirements with StarClan would come to face her. The question was what the world of living cats would do.

She had never thought much about being a medicine cat before, but now that the idea was planted in her head, she could see herself sitting in the cave and collecting herbs. When Fernkit had a tumble, Bubblekit was quick to ask if she was okay rather than pouncing on her while she was down. _But leaders don't scratch cats in their wounds, _she thought. _And medicine cats aren't just here to be compassionate. _She had heard gossip from the older cats about a horrible leaf-bare in the past, where Grayleaf had to make harsh decisions of who should receive treatment for greencough and who should not. _If I had it my way, I'd give Fernkit and my parents all the medicine. _The selflessness of a medicine cat was tough, and she wasn't sure if she was capable of choosing what could ultimately be life or death for a cat.

_But that's what leaders have to do when they announce a battle, or set a rule in place! _The thoughts swam around her head like RiverClan cats. When she found something to support one idea, another thought came around and balanced it out. _At this rate, I won't make any choice._

Eventually, she came to the conclusion that no choice could be made without being informed. "I have to learn what each job is really like," she told Grayleaf one day as he came into camp, carrying a wad of cobweb in his teeth.

"That's a good idea," he said. Bubblekit was no longer as small as she had been, but she still had to trot to keep up with Grayleaf's walking. "Contrasting the duties of a medicine cat and a warrior is a smart way to go about making a decision."

"I don't want to learn what it's like to be a warrior," she protested. "I want to learn what it's like to be leader!"

"Leader? Don't you think that's a little ambitious of you?" Grayleaf asked. Having arrived in the medicine cat's den, he deftly put the cobweb in its spot.

"If I'm in a prophecy, shouldn't I become the leader?" she asked.

"That's not always the case," Grayleaf replied. "Prophecies are more common than you might realize."

"Is this your first one?"

"Yes," he answered, "but I'm still young. Either way, not every prophecy requires that you become a leader. Many prophecies are lived out through the lives of queens or warriors."

"Then why do you want me to become a medicine cat?"

"It's always safest to have a medicine cat and an apprentice, in case something bad happens. You seem like you would make a good and competent medicine cat, and the prophecy situation just makes it seem ideal. I mean, we're the most important cats in the Clan! Without us, everyone would die of injury or infection."

Bubblekit remembered her mother saying that there was no single most important cat in the Clan, but Grayleaf's words enticed her more. If she were the medicine cat and central to a prophecy, she would definitely be the most important cat in the Clan.

"The only problem is, though," Grayleaf continued, "is that many cats don't realize how gravely they need us. We only shine in dire times of need, and even then, it is usually a leader's strength or courage that they pay attention to."

That brought Bubblekit's choices back into balance. She could either be falsely recognized as the most important cat in the Clan, or she could really be the most important cat in the Clan and receive no recognition.

"Warriors support their Clan through fighting and hunting. Often times, it is their poor decision making that gets us into trouble. They can be quite the mousebrains if they see a patrol from another Clan across the border."

Bubblekit shivered. She did not like fights. "I thought we were in a time of peace."

"There is never peace in the Clans," Grayleaf meowed. "Legend tells of a time that the Clans united as one to overcome a great journey. They spared their quarrels and hatred of the past so that everyone could survive. It's such a shame they couldn't stay that way."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"A medicine cat is different from a warrior. We see no borders. If we see a sick or injured cat, we must tend to them, regardless of what they have said or done to us and our Clan in the past. That is why you'll notice, when I take you to the Gatherings—"

"When I go to the Gatherings with whomever I choose."

"Yes, forgive me. When you go to the Gatherings, you will see that us medicine cats like to sit together and share tongues. We don't spend our time bickering like all the other cats."

"You're the only cat in the Clan who seems to think this way," Bubblekit noted.

"I like to think it's because I get to see the prosperity in StarClan. When I see those cats who used to belong to all different Clans sitting, purring and sharing tongues, I have to believe that this is not the way we were intended to live here, all divided by blood and territories."

"Do medicine cats just sit here all day and talk about how much they hate the Clans?"

"Hey, watch that tongue of yours. Come with me and I'll show you what I do. I think you're about old enough to exit the camp.

* * *

Bubblekit had never been outside of the camp before, and the idea thrilled her. Grayleaf led the way out of the camp, expertly navigating the rocks and roots until he stood underneath a big, leafy tree. "C'mon, Bubblekit! Put some effort into it."

Finally scrambling to the top, Bubblekit fell at Grayleaf's paws, panting. He poked her in the side with a large, furry paw. "We have places to go. If you're this out of shape when you're an apprentice, don't even _think _about trying to become a warrior." He slowed down a bit as he walked to let Bubblekit admire the forest.

"I remember my first time out of the camp," he mused. "It was great. My mentor took me around the whole length of the territory to show me where all our herbs grew. The next morning, he told me what he needed, assigned a warrior to escort me, and told me to go get it. We got so lost, it wasn't even funny! You know who that warrior was?"

"Who?" Bubblekit asked.

"Honeystar."

"You and Honeystar were friends?"

"We still are! It's important that a leader and a medicine cat be close," he meowed.

"Well, my dad's the deputy. When he's leader, we'll already be close."

"Don't you think it's a little strange to want to be leader after your father?"

"Somebody has to be, I guess," Bubblekit sighed. "I haven't really thought of it that way before."

"If you become medicine cat, you'll have a closer connection with StarClan. When your kin passes, you'll be able to see them more than a regular cat."

"Speaking of kin, isn't it true that medicine cats aren't allowed to have kits?"

"No, we aren't." Graytail stopped to look at a flower. "I would've liked to have had a mate, but the Clans' rules have their reasons."

"So why is it?"

"If you had kits and there was a deadly bought of greencough going around, would you give the last amount of catmint to your sick kits, or a cat who had a worse infection?"

"Oh," Bubblekit mewed softly, coming to a realization. "I understand, I think. No cat should have to have that choice made by someone else."

"But it so happens that I must make that choice anyway," Graytail meowed quietly. He paused in front of a tangle of fresh green leaves. "See this?"

"What is it?" Bubblekit approached the sprigs slowly.

"It's dock," Graytail told her. "Help me take a few leaves. Don't pull it up from the roots."

Bubblekit moved in and started chewing on a leaf near the top of the plant, careful to avoid anything that could be close to the roots. _I wouldn't like to get reprimanded before I'm even an apprentice, _she thought, suddenly feeling a bit nervous. _What if I mess this up before he's even my mentor? I'd rather not have that decided for me._

"What's this?"

Almost dropping the leaves in her jaws, Bubblekit turned around to see a small hunting patrol returning to camp. Dawnblaze was talking through a small mouse in her teeth, the rest of the cats' mouths loaded with fat prey.

"Did we miss an apprentice ceremony? I didn't realize you were becoming a medicine cat, Bubblepaw!"

"I'm not Bubblepaw yet," Bubblekit meowed to her.

"She was just curious, that's all," Graytail explained to the gray she-cat.

"Well, let me know if you need any warriors to guide you through the dangerous ThunderClan territory!"

"I can handle myself perfectly well," Graytail retorted. "You remember our training, don't you?"

"You trained with her?" Bubblekit asked.

"Oh, Bubblekit, you've got more to learn about than leaves! Dawnblaze is my littermate," he meowed. "She's trouble, too. Stay away from her!"

"Don't listen to him!" Dawnblaze called back to Bubblekit as her patrol entered camp.

"I do think I should take you back, though," Graytail meowed, resting his tail on Bubblekit's shoulder. "There's much more to show you than collecting herbs, and most of that rests in the medicine cat's den."

* * *

"Is this the first time you've really been in here?"

"I've stopped by before," Bubblekit meowed quietly. The inside of the medicine cat's den was dark, and it took her eyes a moment to adjust before she could make sense of what she was seeing.

"The herbs are stored all around," Grayleaf meowed, gesturing to leaves poking out of all holes in the walls and ground, "and I usually sleep by the pool."

"Aren't you afraid you'd fall in?" Bubblekit sat in front of the pool and looked down at her reflection. "This is incredible! You have all this fresh water whenever you want it?"

"Well, it's not all mine," he meowed. In a smaller voice with a light chuckle, he added, "I don't always like to drink from it. It kind of tastes like cave."

"Moss!" Bubblekit pounced on a scrap of dried moss that lay on the floor. "Oh, we used to play with this all the time! Fernkit's stopped playing lately. She'd rather _talk _about real prey than practice on fake prey."

"She does have some sense, doesn't she? I mean, you can't eat moss."

"I think it'd taste funny." Bubblekit stopped in front of a flower pressed into the wall. "Doesn't this stuff rot? If we can't eat crow-food, how are we supposed to use crow-leaves?"

"It takes longer to rot than prey does," Grayleaf noted, "but it is a medicine cat's duty to get rid of rotten herbs and replace them with new ones. That's why it gets hard to run on old medicine come leaf-bare."

"Leaf-bare ... I've heard many things about it," Bubblekit meowed. "It sounds like many cats don't like it."

"It's a hard season. It's cold and hungry, but it's quite beautiful. Have you seen snow?"

"Don't you know I was born after the last snow?"

"I wasn't the cat who delivered you," Grayleaf meowed. "I'm rather new at my job, to be honest."

"Does that make you bad at it?"

"You're not very good at asking questions politely," Grayleaf pointed out. "It doesn't necessarily make me bad, but it doesn't always mean I'm great." He sighed. "It was because of my bad work as an apprentice that we lost some cats last leaf-bare. I threw away our catmint too soon, and RiverClan weren't willing to share any of their store with us."

"Aren't the Clans supposed to be at peace? It doesn't make sense that they wouldn't help us, does it?"

"The Clans are never truly at peace. There are always tensions. A lot of ThunderClan think that RiverClan were being selfish, but the last time I saw Dustfur, they had even more ill than we did."

"Why didn't they tell you?"

"Every Clan must seem strongest, even at their weakest. We, as ThunderClan, must be bold."

"What about the other Clans?"

"They all have their strengths and weaknesses, and much to be learned about each other. Did you know that RiverClan like to decorate their nests with shells and rocks and leaves?"

"Really? That sounds so silly!"

"And it must sound even sillier to WindClan, who sleep out in the open with nothing about their heads! We're all so mouse-brained, in the end."

Bubblekit purred. "Thanks for today, Graytail. I think I know a lot about what it's like to be a medicine cat."

"Oh, you don't know the start of it!" Graytail swatted her ears. "But I'm glad I could help. I hope Honeystar doesn't go too hard on you. Warriors can be harsh, y'know?" The comment did not elicit a response. "Well, I hope this will help you in your decision, and I hope you'll be coming back here as Bubblepaw."

"We'll see," Bubblekit meowed, turning to exit. She meowed her goodbye to Graytail and returned to the nursery. The sky was darkening and Silverpelt was beaming down from behind the clouds. Fernkit was already asleep, having strayed from the side of her mother long ago and instead choosing to curl next to her littermate.

Settling down to Fernkit, Bubblekit thought about all the rest she'd need for tomorrow, spending the day with Honeystar. _Oh, StarClan, please let me get a good night of sleep! _Despite her prayers, none came and she listened to her sister snore the whole night.


	5. Chapter Three

"So, you want me to show you what it's like to be a warrior?"

"I-is that alright?" Bubblekit found that talking to Honeystar was much more intimidating than talking to Grayleaf. Despite that they were both just ascended members of ThunderClan, Honeystar acted with the regality and cold calculation of a smart leader. As Bubblekit had to almost run to keep up with her long strides to the fresh-kill pile, Honeystar picked up a small vole toward the bottom of the pile.

"Well, I suppose I can do that. I imagine you also want to know a bit what it's like to be leader, too," Honeystar meowed. "After all, your father will have to pick someone to lead when he becomes leader. Don't expect him to pick you, though. He'll be accused of favoritism faster than you can flick your tail."

"Why are you picking small prey from the bottom of the pile? Everyone thinks you're the most important cat in the Clan. You should get to eat the big pieces of prey!"

Honeystar purred. "They _think _I'm the most important cat in the Clan? Oh, I see Grayleaf's gotten in your head. I may be the leader, but I'm not the most important." She took a bite out of the side of her vole. "I used to be a warrior, and I used to be an apprentice, and I used to be a kit."

"But being a leader and a deputy puts you so much apart!"

Honeystar nudged the vole to Bubblekit. "Do you want some?"

Bubblekit took a nervous bite. "You're the leader, and you're sharing your prey with a kit! That's absurd!"

"By no means," Honeystar sighed. "Being the leader of ThunderClan means that you must accept that strength and bravery requires humility and selflessness. Is it more brave to admit someone is better at hunting than you are, or more brave to keep trying and trying to impress your friends?"

"Well, if you keep trying, you'll get better, won't you?"

"Or," Honeystar meowed, answering her own question, "you could be brave, accept that you're not as good a hunter, and ask that other cat for some advice. It might help you in the end."

"So, if someone was better at being a leader than you, would you let _them _be leader?"

"There are some things that StarClan intends to be a certain way," Honeystar meows. They oversee everything we do, and a leader chooses their deputy with their guidance. StarClan knows who we are when we exit our mothers. It's their job to keep us on track and make sure we do the right things in our lives."

"I want to be leader," Bubblekit mewed, "and I want to be medicine cat. Why can't StarClan let me be both, if that's what would make me happy?"

"Don't let the prophecy get to your head, Bubblekit."

"But I'm a kit sharing lunch with a leader! Yesterday, I spent a day talking to the medicine cat, and today, I'm spending the day talking to the leader! Normal kits don't do that!"

"Oh, do you believe so? I think that today, Bubblekit, you must learn a lesson about humility. Why don't you go wake up Fernkit and ask her to come along?"

"Fernkit? But today's when I need to make my decision, and I need your private help! Otherwise, my apprentice ceremony will come and I won't know what to do!"

"Well, maybe the advice of your sister will help you. Go on, get her while I finish my food."

Bubblekit sighed, her tail and head both hanging low, and walked back to the nursery.

Upon hearing that she was invited to tag along with Bubblekit and Honeystar, Fernkit was overjoyed. She ran out of the nursery over to Honeystar, nearly colliding with her.

"We get to spend the day with _you? _This is going to be the best day of my life! I don't even care when I get my warrior name, or apprentice name, or––actually, I _do _care. Please give me my names!"

"You'll get your names in time," Honeystar purred. She licked Fernkit's forehead and shot Bubblekit a glare over her sister. "How about I start by taking you two hunting?"

"Hunting? We don't know how to hunt," Bubblekit protested. "That's no fair!"

"If you can both stand to learn something, I'm sure this will be good for us all. Perhaps you can give me back some of the energy of kithood." Honeystar swept aside the remains of her vole and got up on her paws. "Follow me, and stay close behind. I don't want either of you getting lost in the woods."

ThunderClan territory was dense with trees and ferns, but luckily, they lacked the marshiness of neighboring ShadowClan. Fernkit was using the tight-packed ground to bounce almost her own tail-length into the air with every bound, while Bubblekit was sinking low to the dusty forest floor. She was embarrassed and angry, annoyed to see her energetic sister relishing every moment of the day.

"Oh, Honeystar, are these plants we can eat? Why don't we eat those instead of mice and voles and squirrels? Maybe I should ask Grayleaf instead. I think he'd know about leaves and stuff––I mean, that's what medicine cats do, isn't it?"

"They do more than just 'leaves and stuff'," Bubblekit growled, her ears flat against her head.

"Well, don't get all upset!" Fernkit gave her a reassuring lick to the ears. "You look like you're not having much fun. How about I tell you something to cheer you up?"

"Which would be?"

"Remember when we used to play _KitClan? _Soon, we'll be _ApprenticeClan! _Oh, that just sounds silly, playing a game like that instead of doing hard training to become a warrior. Maybe we'll just be ThunderClan from now on."

Bubblekit remembered the insight that Grayleaf had to other clans. _All that knowledge would be a real advantage in battle, but I bet he'd be too stubborn to use that against them. I bet if she needed it, Honeystar would make him tell._

She stared at the swaying tail of the orange ThunderClan leader. Honeystar was sniffing the air like she was on a hunt, but not expecting to catch much prey with two loud kits trailing behind her. Finally, her eyes lit with recognition as she caught a scent. "Fernkit, Bubblekit, please be quiet," she meowed in a soft voice. "I smell a mouse."

"A mouse?" Fernkit whispered to her sister. "No way! I bet we'll see her catch it! Or maybe _I _can catch it and impress her. Oh, I hope she's my mentor!"

"Do you _ever _stop talking?" Bubblekit growled.

"I can hear you both," Honeystar meowed, much to Fernkit's sudden embarrassment, "and if I can, so can the prey." She dropped to her haunches and peered around a clump of tree roots. Gesturing for the kits to watch from the side with her tail, she shook her rump and pounced on a tiny brown mouse sniffing at a knot in the roots.

She killed the mouse and stood over its tiny body. "Thank you, StarClan, for giving us this prey." She looked down at the broken mouse. "Your sacrifice will be used to help bring life into the forest," she meowed.

"Do you do this every time you make a kill?" Bubblekit asked. "No wonder cats say we go hungry in leaf-bare; if prey is weak, we're not going to eat much if the warriors spend all day thanking StarClan for dead mice."

"I don't do this for every catch, no," Honeystar meowed, annoyed, "but I think it. The warrior code states that we must be thankful for every morsel we eat. StarClan has given us the right to eat when we must, and it's important we don't get selfish. Prey is just as honorable as we are."

"But it's a _mouse!" _Bubblekit snapped. "It's not a warrior, it doesn't have to go on patrols to feed its Clan, and it doesn't have a warrior code to follow!"

"If you think that way, perhaps being a hunter isn't the role you'd be best fit for, Bubblekit," Honeystar meowed gravely.

Fernkit, of course, was oblivious to the tension. "Do we take it back to the Clan now, or do we hunt for more? I know _everything _about the warrior code! We're not to eat unless our Clan is fed!"

"Correct, Fernkit. Would you like to carry this while we continue on our hunt? Maybe it'll help keep your voice down. I don't want you scaring the whole forest away!"

Fernkit bowed her head, obviously hurt by the words from Honeystar. "I'm sorry," Honeystar continued. "That was a bit mean of me. Why doesn't Bubblekit carry this?"

_Great, _Bubblekit thought, picking up the mouse. _Honeystar hates me and I'm lugging a dead mouse that I can't eat through the forest on a hot day. _As she trailed behind her sister and the ThunderClan leader, she was certain that training under Honeystar would be the furthest thing from fun.

Honeystar knew that she had more duties to show than just a patrol, so she turned around at a certain point and started leading the kits back. "One catch is enough for our little trip," she meowed. "Our Clan is full and there's more for us to do today."

"Are we going to learn to fight? Or go to a border? Oh, what if we see a WindClan or a ShadowClan patrol? I'll tear them to shreds!"

"I'm afraid we won't be going near any of the borders," Honeystar meowed. "I wouldn't want any of the other Clans to get the idea that we're training kit warriors."

"But we're so close to being apprentices! We could just explain that we're getting our first taste of what it's like to fight."

"There are legends of ShadowClan training kit warriors many seasons ago, when we lived in another place. If we met one of their patrols, I'm afraid that could stir up trouble." Her eyes looked tired, like it was useless holding on to the flickering light of hope through the lake territory.

Fernkit sighed and said nothing more, her tail drooping. "What do you think, Bubblekit? Is this fun?"

"I want to eat this mouse," Bubblekit growled. "I wish we were back at camp so I could put it on the fresh-kill pile."

"Well, if you're going to be a warrior like me, you're going to have to learn to put your impulses aside for the good of the Clan! Indulgence is what causes hungry cats."

"If you indulge upon eating, I don't think anyone's getting any hungrier," Bubblekit retorted.

"Calm down, Bubblekit," Honeystar meowed. "Being stubborn isn't good. You're about to start on a journey of learning, and you might find it's hard to learn when you think you know everything."

Bubblekit sighed and almost dashed back into camp when she saw the entrance. Bounding down to the camp floor, she trotted over to the fresh-kill pile and dropped the mouse on top.

"Did you catch that?" Bubblekit turned around to see Grayleaf sitting in the entrance of his den.

"No, Honeystar did." Checking to make sure the leader was out of earshot, Bubblekit whispered the rest. "I don't think she likes me."

Grayleaf purred with amusement. "Go on, catch back up to her. I'm sure she has other plans for the day."

Bubblekit nodded and ran back to Honeystar and her sister, standing at the entrance of the camp. Grayleaf was right; Honeystar next took them on another unfamiliar path through the woods. Bubblekit looked up as the trees thinned and the plants grew greener.

"Where are we going?" Fernkit asked. Bubblekit could tell she had held back the question, but couldn't take the suspense anymore.

"The lake," Honeystar meowed. "I think there's a RiverClan patrol heading to the bank around now. Maybe you two can wave to them."

"I've never seen a cat from another Clan before! Do they look like us?"

"RiverClan are a bit more fat," Honeystar meowed, "and their pelts are sleeker."

"What about the others? We should see them, too!"

Honeystar flicked her with her tail. "Hush. You'll see all the cats in due time." She paused in front of a large oak tree. "Remember this tree, kits. It's stood here for seasons upon seasons."

"Haven't all these trees? Trees are old," Fernkit meowed.

Honeystar sighed. "Come on. Here's the lake."

When they exited the last clearing of trees, Bubblekit and Fernkit stopped in awe. The lake spanned on for almost as far as they could see, reflecting blue sky and puffy clouds. The same place that held Silverpelt and StarClan every night was both above and below them, fringed with trees on the ground and clouds in the sky.

Fernkit looked at the land surrounding the lake. "Which Clan is where?"

Honeystar gestured with her tail. "There's WindClan, RiverClan, and ShadowClan. We are all graced by StarClan to be here." She closely examined the RiverClan shore and her ears stood up. "There they are."

"Hi, RiverClan!" Fernkit exclaimed.

"Hello!" Bubblekit cried.

"It would be an act of StarClan if they could hear you," Honeystar meowed. She could make out the shapes of a few warriors in a border patrol, parts of RiverClan obscured by the island. Flicking her tail and walking around, she caught the attention of one warrior, who waved his tail.

Honeystar waved hers back and tapped the shoulders of the kits at her sides. "Wave back," she instructed.

Fernkit and Bubblekit did so until the RiverClan patrol lost interest and turned away. "I can't believe that this is the lake!" Fernkit mewed.

Bubblekit licked up a drink from the standing water. "It doesn't taste as good as I expected," she meowed sadly.

Fernkit did the same. "It tastes like the ground."

Honeystar extended her slender neck and lapped water from further out. "You two are licking up more dirt than water," she meowed. "When you get a bit bigger, you can taste the better water."

"You have to be big to have anything good happen, don't you?" Fernkit meowed, disappointed.

"You'll grow quickly," Honeystar mewed. "When you two are done, I think it might be time for us to go down. I have to check with Twigfur about tonight's patrols, and you two have some reflecting to do." Her eyes lingered on Bubblekit.

"Reflecting? Oh, is that a joke because the lake is reflecting––"

Honeystar purred. "I didn't even think about that." She nuzzled Fernkit. "Come on. Let's get you home. Maybe I should give you the position of humor deputy."

"Do they have those? Oh, I'd love to do that!"

"Maybe you'll form a new Clan," Bubblekit commented. "FunnyClan?"

"I call being the leader! You can be the deputy, Bubblekit."

Honeystar purred louder and started on her way back to camp, Bubblekit and Fernkit bouncing around behind her.

* * *

"Can you believe today? StarClan must really like us, giving us a day with Honeystar like that!"

"Fernkit, it'll be moonhigh by the time you stop talking! I have to sleep," Bubblekit groaned. She had wanted silence to deal with her thoughts and make her choice.

"I love Honeystar so much," Fernkit mewed softly. "I really hope she's my mentor. I've trained all my moons to be a warrior. I hope she realizes that."

Bubblekit had been ignoring the signs the whole day, but she knew at that point that taking Honeystar as a mentor would mean that Fernkit would lose her goal in life. _I don't even know if I _want _to do it, and it's become her dream. _Letting the facts fall in place, Bubblekit couldn't ignore the signs: Honeystar was going to be harsh on her, and it would not be enjoyable; Grayleaf was much kinder to Bubblekit and showed her no disrespect; Fernkit had held ambition to train under Honeystar her whole life, and her knowledge of the warrior code and the rules of ThunderClan showed it; and speaking to Grayleaf between her venture through the forest with Honeystar had felt like a moment of cool air on a hot day.

_I suppose that's it, then. I'm going to have to become the medicine cat apprentice. _She looked out through the small gaps in the den to see the moon hanging above the Clan, gleaming off the stones of Highledge. _I may never stand from Highledge and address ThunderClan that it is mine, _she reminded herself. Her attention was then drawn further up, to Silverpelt. _ThunderClan won't know they are mine, but StarClan will know. Who are more important? _She would carry ThunderClan through her life. It would define her.

Grayleaf had told her that there were no more Clans in StarClan; that previous alliances and battles meant nothing when you were a cat watching down on the Clans. _I'll be a ThunderClan cat for many seasons, but I'll be a StarClan cat forever. Who would I rather be recognized under? Do I take my joy now, or later?_

Despite Honeystar's stern actions, she realized that maybe carrying the mouse around the forest might have been more of a lesson than a burden. _Maybe she _doesn't _want me to become her apprentice, after all. Maybe that honor should go to Fernkit. _As she had clutched the mouse in her jaws, it took every scrap of her self control to stop herself from biting down and devouring the small thing. However, doing so would mean that she couldn't save her urges and desires for later. _I had to hold back for the good of my Clan, and I still got to eat later, anyway. Perhaps I may not be the best leader, come the future of our Clan, if I cannot hold back. It may be the best to hold back now and eat my prey later, _she concluded, once again looking up at her starry ancestors, _when I am with StarClan._


End file.
